This invention relates generally to a material roll support assembly and particularly to a drive and lift assembly which permits the roll to be loaded onto the support shaft and elevated while maintaining engagement of the drive assembly.
In the operation of printing presses it is necessary to load and unload rolls of web forming material. Small, lightweight rolls present no problem and are usually handled manually. Large, heavy rolls, however, require mechanical handling to avoid damage to the product or injury to the operator.
Various solutions have been tried in the handling of large rolls. In the case of presses of the type having a removable core shaft, for example, somewhat complicated pivoted yokes have been used that engage the shafted roll to raise it into operating position. In the case of presses having a cantilevered core shaft independent auxiliary lift means have been used to raise the roll. Vertical lift carriages are also known which raise the roll to the cantilever core shaft level and rely on the operator to jostle the roll onto the core shaft. It is also common to provide specially equipped fork lift trucks to raise the roll.
The removable shaft type of device tends to be expensive and the cantilevered type of device invariably presents alignment problems even when outboard support is provided.
The present invention solves these and other problems in a manner not revealed in the known prior art.